The recent passing of a dear friend and how she taught me about life

I lost a dear friend a few weeks ago. She lived to be 80 some years old.... all of those years were great until her slow demise in the last decade. She bore thousands of offspring, ...generation after generation after generation. She survived two World Wars, the Korean Conflict and the Vietnam War, although many of her children weren't as fortunate.....she lost many of her family in those wars...I'm thankful she didn't have to give any more children up to the wars of today.

She was a beautiful woman. When the sun would shine down on a side of her face, she would glow magnificently and you could see many chapters of her life's story shine through her stained glass eyes. Even though I lived with her for four years, I didn't see that beauty until much later in life during a visit close to her death. 

She raised doctors, nurses, lawyers, famous sports figures, a Broadway producer and many other notables.  Yet, she treated all of her children the same whether black, white, Jewish, Catholic, orphaned, poor or rich...they were all her children. She taught her children to be proud. She taught her children compassion for their fellow man and woman. She expected you to be on time every day regardless of what your task was.  She expected you to complete your assignments when given them. When necessary, she would deal out corporal punishment if it was required.

She was the perfect host. Often having dances in her home, with her family decorating the giant ballroom with appropriate festive colors. She would invite the public to come and see plays and theatrical performances that her children loved to create to showcase their talents.

She would invite all of her children to return over the years to visit one last time and remember some of the moments that molded their lives. 

In the end, she stood proudly until her heart pounded its final beat.

She whispered to all who would allow themselves to listen, "Don't be sad, we've all prospered. Take what you've learned from me and try and make a better world"

As I mentioned, I saw her earlier this year, she was a mere skeleton of herself. But her "eyes" that let the sun shine in gave me warmth and told me, "I'll be fine".

I'll miss you great lady......I'll always remember you and our family.